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The Life of a Modern Saint:
Padre Pio
Early Years of Padre Pio
Padre Pio is possibly the most well-known mystic of the twentieth century. Born in Pietrelcina, Italy, in 1887, he lived through two world wars and all of the myriad worldwide changes that took place in the many decades afterwards.
Padre Pio was one of seven children, although two siblings died in infancy. His parents Grazio Mario Forgione (1860-1946) and Maria Guiseppa de Nunzio Forgione (1859-1929) were devout Catholics. For the Forgione family, religion was the center of life.
At the young age of five, Padre Pio consecrated his life to Jesus. By the age of ten, he hade made his wishes to enter a friary known to his parents. However, Padre had only three years of formal schooling and needed a private tutor to prepare for the religious life. His father went to America to find work that would provide the financial means for this necessity.
 Padre Pio Becomes Friar
At age 15, he took the Habit of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin. After many years of preparation, Padre Pio was finally ordained as a priest in August of 1910. Within a month, he experienced a visitation from Jesus and Mary and received the stigmata, or the wounds of Christ. This resulted in great consternation among his doctors and was embarrassing for Padre Pio, who preferred to live his spiritual life in private. The wounds disappeared, but only for awhile.
Padre Pio's Religious Ecstasies
The following year, Padre Pio experienced the first of a series of religious ecstasies. He appeared to be dying to a brother friar who found him and rushed to a chapel to pray for him, but later was discovered to be alert and full of joy.
Padre Pio's Health Challenges
Padre Pio experienced repeated challenges to his health throughout his life. From 1911-1916, he was sent home from the friary to recuperate. He said Mass and taught school during this time. Eventually he was assigned to Our Lady Of Grace Capuchin Friary near San Giovanni Rotondo, an agricultural community in the Gargano Mountains. This was a small, isolated friary that was difficult to reach.
Padre Pio in the Military
Padre Pio, along with many of his brother monks, was briefly inducted into the Italian military during World War I. However, Padre Pio's ill health soon led to his discharge. In response to a call from Pope Benedict XV for Christians to pray for the end of the war, Padre Pio offered himself as a sacrifice to God for this purpose. Within days, Padre Pio had a vision in which Christ appeared and pierced his side, causing a physical wound. This experience is referred to as a "transverberation" or piercing of the heart, an indication of a union of love with God.
 Padre Pio Receives the Stigmata
A few weeks later, Padre Pio received the stigmata in another vision. This time, the wounds would remain with him for the last fifty years of his life. The wounds were a constant source of pain and bleeding and healed only at his death.
Padre Pio's Spiritual Gifts
Padre Pio's fame began to spread. His other spiritual gifts were also revealed, including the ability to bilocate, the ability to read men's hearts, the ability to prophecy and an Odor of Sanctity that constantly surrounded him, described by some as the smell of roses.
As Padre Pio's fame increased, he also had detractors who accusations against him resulted in restrictions on his priestly duties and his contact with the public at different times, sometimes for extended periods.
The Rigorous Life of Padre Pio
When he was permitted to function fully in his office, Padre Pio's days were long and strenuous. An typical day might include nineteen hours of Mass, hearing confessions and correspondence. Padre Pio often slept two hours or less. Due to the remoteness of the friary, there were no accommodations for the pilgrims who came and many slept outside in the hopes of being present at a Mass or attending confession with Padre Pio.
In the 1940s, Padre Pio also founded a hospital referred to as the Home to Relieve Suffering. The United Nations gave a $325,000 grant for the hospital and the doors were opened on May 5, 1956.
By the mid-1960s, Padre Pio's health had greatly deteriorated. He continued to say Mass and hear a limited number of confessions until his death on September 23, 1968. One hundred thousand people attended his funeral. He was buried in the Church of Our Lady of Grace.
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